Many musicians such as cellists find it necessary to travel by air in order to accommodate engagements at different locations required for an active concert schedule. For cellists in particular, air travel presents a unique problem with regard to the protection of their valuable instrument. Existing airline policy requires cellists to either pay for an expensive seat for their instrument or to check it on the airplane as fragile cargo. Prior to the present invention, the latter alternative was not practical, because even the more advanced "hard" cello cases failed to provide adequate shock protection for the instrument in a cargo facility. Cellos, like most stringed instruments are characteristically fragile as well as being expensive to repair or replace. The conventional hard case affords only minimal protection against exterior impinging shock forces or blows against it. A direct force transmitted to an outer hard case has a significant probability of distrupting or damaging the cello inside or of at least affecting its sound quality when subsequently used. Thus, the traveling cellist, to insure the safety of his instrument was heretofore obliged to buy an extra airline seat for his instrument to insure its protection.
It is therefore one object of the invention to solve the aforesaid problem by providing a shock-proof enclosure for a cello that enables it to be placed in a cargo section of an airliner with the assurance that the cello will be more fully protected from any damage due to extraneous shock forces.
Another object of the invention is to provide a shock proof enclosure for a cello within its conventional case that is relatively light and easy to carry.
Still another object of the invention is to provide a shock proof carrying or storage enclosure for a cello that is easy to assemble, open and close, and also highly durable.